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Publications

This list of Water Resources Mission Area publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists. A searchable database of all USGS publications can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.

Filter Total Items: 19021

The importance of base flow in sustaining surface water flow in the Upper Colorado River Basin The importance of base flow in sustaining surface water flow in the Upper Colorado River Basin

The Colorado River has been identified as the most overallocated river in the world. Considering predicted future imbalances between water supply and demand and the growing recognition that base flow (a proxy for groundwater discharge to streams) is critical for sustaining flow in streams and rivers, there is a need to develop methods to better quantify present-day base flow across large...
Authors
Matthew P. Miller, Susan G. Buto, David D. Susong, Christine Rumsey

Climate regulates alpine lake ice cover phenology and aquatic ecosystem structure Climate regulates alpine lake ice cover phenology and aquatic ecosystem structure

High-elevation aquatic ecosystems are highly vulnerable to climate change, yet relatively few records are available to characterize shifts in ecosystem structure or their underlying mechanisms. Using a long-term dataset on seven alpine lakes (3126 to 3620 m) in Colorado, USA, we show that ice-off dates have shifted seven days earlier over the past 33 years and that spring weather...
Authors
Daniel L. Preston, Nel Caine, Diane M. McKnight, Mark W. Williams, Katherina Hell, Matthew P. Miller, Sarah J. Hart, Pieter T.J. Johnson

Three-dimensional flow structure and patterns of bed shear stress in an evolving compound meander bend Three-dimensional flow structure and patterns of bed shear stress in an evolving compound meander bend

Compound meander bends with multiple lobes of maximum curvature are common in actively evolving lowland rivers. Interaction among spatial patterns of mean flow, turbulence, bed morphology, bank failures and channel migration in compound bends is poorly understood. In this paper, acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) measurements of the three-dimensional (3D) flow velocities in a...
Authors
Frank L. Engel, Bruce L. Rhoads

Streamflow, water quality and constituent loads and yields, Scituate Reservoir drainage area, Rhode Island, water year 2014 Streamflow, water quality and constituent loads and yields, Scituate Reservoir drainage area, Rhode Island, water year 2014

Streamflow and concentrations of sodium and chloride estimated from records of specific conductance were used to calculate loads of sodium and chloride during water year (WY) 2014 (October 1, 2013, through September 30, 2014) for tributaries to the Scituate Reservoir, Rhode Island. Streamflow and water-quality data used in the study were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey and the...
Authors
Kirk P. Smith

Hydrologic and hydraulic analyses for the Black Fork Mohican River Basin in and near Shelby, Ohio Hydrologic and hydraulic analyses for the Black Fork Mohican River Basin in and near Shelby, Ohio

Hydrologic and hydraulic analyses were done for selected reaches of five streams in and near Shelby, Richland County, Ohio. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District, conducted these analyses on the Black Fork Mohican River and four tributaries: Seltzer Park Creek, Seltzer Park Tributary, Tuby Run, and West Branch. Drainage areas...
Authors
Carrie A. Huitger, Chad J. Ostheimer, G. F. Koltun

Sediment chemistry and toxicity in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey: Pre- and post-Hurricane Sandy, 2012–13 Sediment chemistry and toxicity in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey: Pre- and post-Hurricane Sandy, 2012–13

Hurricane Sandy made landfall in Barnegat Bay, October, 29, 2012, damaging shorelines and infrastructure. Estuarine sediment chemistry and toxicity were investigated before and after to evaluate potential environmental health impacts and to establish post-event baseline sediment-quality conditions. Trace element concentrations increased throughout Barnegat Bay up to two orders of...
Authors
Kristin M. Romanok, Zoltan Szabo, Timothy J. Reilly, Zafer Defne, Neil K. Ganju

Evaluation of background concentrations of selected chemical and radiochemical constituents in water from the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at and near the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Evaluation of background concentrations of selected chemical and radiochemical constituents in water from the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at and near the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho

The U.S. Geological Survey and Idaho Department of Environmental Quality Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Oversight Program in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy determined background concentrations of selected chemical and radiochemical constituents in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer to aid with ongoing cleanup efforts at the INL. Chemical and radiochemical constituents...
Authors
Roy C. Bartholomay, L. Flint Hall

Numerical simulation of the groundwater-flow system of the Kitsap Peninsula, west-central Washington Numerical simulation of the groundwater-flow system of the Kitsap Peninsula, west-central Washington

A groundwater-flow model was developed to improve understanding of water resources on the Kitsap Peninsula. The Kitsap Peninsula is in the Puget Sound lowland of west-central Washington, is bounded by Puget Sound on the east and by Hood Canal on the west, and covers an area of about 575 square miles. The peninsula encompasses all of Kitsap County, Mason County north of Hood Canal, and...
Authors
Lonna M. Frans, Theresa D. Olsen

Evaluation of the Storm 3 data logger manufactured by WaterLOG/Xylem Incorporated—Results of bench, temperature, and field deployment testing Evaluation of the Storm 3 data logger manufactured by WaterLOG/Xylem Incorporated—Results of bench, temperature, and field deployment testing

The Storm 3 is a browser-based data logger manufactured by WaterLOG/Xylem Incorporated that operates over a temperature range of −40 to 60 degrees Celsius (°C). A Storm logger with no built-in telemetry (Storm3-00) and a logger with built-in cellular modem (Storm3-03) were evaluated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility (HIF) for conformance to the...
Authors
Gerald A. Kunkle

Trace elements in stormflow, ash, and burned soil following the 2009 station fire in southern California Trace elements in stormflow, ash, and burned soil following the 2009 station fire in southern California

Most research on the effects of wildfires on stream water quality has focused on suspended sediment and nutrients in streams and water bodies, and relatively little research has examined the effects of wildfires on trace elements. The purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) to determine the effect of the 2009 Station Fire in the Angeles National Forest northeast of Los Angeles, CA on...
Authors
Carmen A. Burton, Todd M. Hoefen, Geoffrey S. Plumlee, Katherine L. Baumberger, Adam R. Backlin, Elizabeth Gallegos, Robert N. Fisher

Simulation of deep ventilation in Crater Lake, Oregon, 1951–2099 Simulation of deep ventilation in Crater Lake, Oregon, 1951–2099

The frequency of deep ventilation events in Crater Lake, a caldera lake in the Oregon Cascade Mountains, was simulated in six future climate scenarios, using a 1-dimensional deep ventilation model (1DDV) that was developed to simulate the ventilation of deep water initiated by reverse stratification and subsequent thermobaric instability. The model was calibrated and validated with lake
Authors
Tamara M. Wood, Susan A. Wherry, Sebastiano Piccolroaz, Scott F Girdner

Long-term trends in a Dimictic Lake Long-term trends in a Dimictic Lake

The one-dimensional hydrodynamic ice model, DYRESM-WQ-I, was modified to simulate ice cover and thermal structure of dimictic Lake Mendota, Wisconsin, USA, over a continuous 104-year period (1911–2014). The model results were then used to examine the drivers of changes in ice cover and water temperature, focusing on the responses to shifts in air temperature, wind speed, and water...
Authors
Dale M. Robertson, Yi-Fang Hsieh, Richard C Lathrop, Chin H Wu, Madeline Magee, David P. Hamilton
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